JANUARY 3, 2021 – An essential trait for survival is adaptability. At the bank where I worked years ago, we were told, “Adapt or die.” I wasn’t sure if that was a dictate or an observation, but either way, I figured the outcome would be the same. I tried to adapt. I quit thinking like an ultra-conservative lawyer and started acting like an innovative entrepreneur. Twenty-five years later, I’m practicing law. So much for adapting.
Now take our daughter-in-law, Mylène. A Parisian with Portuguese roots, she didn’t grow up embracing snow and cold. These were uncomfortable concepts—as were “Minnesota” and “Wisconsin.”
When our son Byron brought Mylène home for the first time, the trip was a major adventure in adaptation. They arrived in time for Thanksgiving, after which Byron wanted to show Mylène the North Shore of Lake Superior, then drive down the Red Cabin for an over-night before heading back to the Twin Cities. Being the inclusive person he is, Byron wanted to include my wife and me in the expedition. It all sounded like a great idea . . . until reality hit.
When we reached the cabin late in the evening, the furnace was out. We fired up the wood-burning stove to allow us to stay the night, but as any stove-owner knows, you don’t simply flip a switch and find yourself on a beach. Depending on the ambient temperature (in our case, below freezing), the wood-burning stove has to work for a while before its radiant heat takes the sight of everyone’s breath away.
I’ll never forget the look on Mylène’s face as Byron wrapped her in four blankets as her teeth chattered. “This is winter in the American Upper Midwest,” we told her. Reminding her of her location didn’t help matters. Her face retained a look of shock.
To Mylène’s credit, she returned many times after that, and not always in the summer. During her visit a year ago, she ventured out on the lake ice and made an exact replica of “Olaf” from . . . Frozen.
This winter, Byron and Mylène drove from their home in New York City to the Red Cabin, where they quarantined before joining us in the Twin Cities for Christmas. Afterwards, we all hauled back up to the “winter wonderland” that surrounds our family’s lakeside retreat.
The Portuguese Parisian is now in her element. She delights in making snow angels, loves to hike in the snow, and though she’s a culinary wizard in the French tradition, Mylène is the last one to go inside after roasting all-American hot dogs over the winter campfire. But le pièce de résistance came yesterday while Byron and I were sawing and splitting fuel for the fire.
“Can I try that?” she asked, as she approached the chopping block.
Mylène has adapted in full. She can now chop wood with the best of local lumberjacks.
Call it, “Adapt and thrive.”
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© 2021 by Eric Nilsson
